Trappistine Convent, Trappistine monastery in Hakodate, Japan
The Trappistine Convent is a women's monastery in Hakodate in the northern prefecture of Hokkaido in Japan. The complex consists of several brick buildings, including a chapel with semicircular arched windows built in the European style.
French nuns founded the monastery in 1898 after Bishop Andre Berlioz acquired a former orphanage building. A fire destroyed the original chapel, and the current brick structure was built in 1927.
Every day the sisters bake and sell Madeleines and other sweets that have become a regional specialty of Hakodate. The name Trappist comes from the French abbey of La Trappe, known for its strict monastic rule.
The front garden and exhibition room are open daily from 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM between May and September. The rest of the premises remains closed to visitors because the sisters live in enclosure.
The chapel from 1927 is among the few surviving Catholic buildings from the early 20th century in northern Japan. The convent was the first contemplative women's monastery in all of Japan when it opened.
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